Deep heavy basslines, lingering rich echoes, relentless grooves, all soaked in colorful psychedelia; this Dub Transmissions installment brings you the latest and most piquant, eclectic and cutting edge gems from the bubbling mystical dub realms.
Pangani :: In The Moment (Self-Released)
Fourteen years after Ott released his Hallucinogen in Dub album, the influence of the psydub emperor persists. Over the years many have tried to imitate his meticulous sonic designs or capture the spirit of his psychedelic, mischievous magic, but in 2016 it seems that his true heir has finally arrived. With a peculiar voice of his own, Sebastian Frisch a.k.a. Pangani takes psydub to the outer limits. His debut album, In The Moment, is filled with beautiful, mind-bending, dexterous programming. Crafty synth work, crisp complex beat construction and warm fat basslines are spiced with flashes of electric guitar, saxophone, EWI, vocals, flute and English horn. It’s a stream of passion that pays tribute to its luminary, spiritual ancestor, without imitating or recycling. Pangani is definitely a creative force on the rise and In The Moment is hopefully a harbinger of even better things to come.
Mop Mop :: Lunar Love (Agogo)
Renowned musician and producer Andrea Benini (a.k.a. Mop Mop) returns with a new album. Once again backed up by a battery of talented instrumentalists and vocalists he delivers a spacey tropical collection of quiet, nocturnal storms. Dub flavors blend with Latin spirit, funk, jazz and electronica. Rich, multilayered arrangements flow seductively, slowly but surely taking hold of the listener. Sculpted with great attention to details and filled with warm, caressing grooves, Lunar Love provides an exotic and highly atmospheric listening experience that gets deeper and wider with each listening session. Out on the eclectic Agogo imprint.
Quantic Presenta Flowering Inferno :: 1000 Watts (Tru Thoughts)
Fourteen richly produced uplifting dub-reggae anthems served with a vintage touch and a Latin and funk aroma, courtesy of musician, DJ and producer Will Holland and an all-star team of guest performers (including vocalists U-Roy and Alice Russell, reggae singers Hollie Cook and Christopher Ellis; the late, great keyboard maestro Ikey Owens and legendary Jamaican drummer Santa Davis) under his Quantic Presenta Flowering Inferno alias. Very melodic and quite infectious 1000 Watts fits so well for those morning rides to work, whether in your car or on the train, but will also charge you with just the right energy before going out to a party on a Friday night. Out on the prolific and very diverse Tru Thoughts imprint.
Dub Spencer & Trance Hill :: Deep Dive Dub (Echo Beach)
Last, but certainly not least, we have the aptly titled ninth album of Switzerland’s mighty dub explorers Dub Spencer & Trance Hill. Deep Dive Dub is the band’s deepest and most eclectic work to date. Once again the band manages to channel the spirit of dub music in the most creative way. The album inventively encapsulates and blends the band’s wide, colorful range of influences: dub, rock, electronica, space rock, reggae, jazz. All is there, bubbling, twisting, throbbing and echoing into space, peppered with the mischievous spirit the band is known for. These 13 dub hybrids are expertly carried out in the groovy, slick dreamy way only Dub Spencer & Trance Hill can carry out. A sumptuous, pulsating, hallucinatory ride through new and electrifying dub districts. Out on the band’s home label in the last ten years, the legendary Hamburg-based Echo Beach.